Plumbers in Devon have been left struggling to pay their bills, and one to even feed his children, after they were told two days before pay day they were being made redundant and would not be getting paid their last month’s salary and overtime.

Thousands of pounds are owed to employees of Dyno Plumbing, who cover Devon, Somerset and Cornwall, after being initially reassured the franchise company they worked for – DaCam Solutions Ltd – would pay their wages after going into liquidation.

Dyno is run by British Gas which is part of Centrica. The only option available to employees is claiming the money from the government, which would take weeks.

The new franchise company, A Hand Services, has taken on the redundant workers and has offered affected employees a £500 loan which would have to be paid back within three months.

Plumbers are owed thousands in unpaid wages after company goes into liquidation (Image: Getty Images)

An angry employee, who asked not to be named, said: “The way things are being run is immoral. I used to be self-employed but I wanted to buy a house and have job security so I started working for Dyno.

"I worked over 200 hours in March, which was making me ill, but I did it because I was getting paid extra for it.

“I have since found out the franchise was taken over on March 15, but we weren’t told anything until two days before pay day on March 27 by the British Gas area manager. He told us we were not hitting targets for the past few years and the franchise company had ceased trading.

“We carried on working as we were told we would still be getting paid, but on pay day we weren’t. I am owed over £3,000. I had just moved into a flat with my partner and the financial pressure of the deposit and rent has caused me considerable stress.

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“I am writing to my boss every day to get the information we need to claim through the government but my emails are being ignored. It could take six weeks when we apply and it’s already been three weeks.

“I am still working for the new franchise company who have said they won’t pay us the money owed, and we have not been given new contracts yet, it has just been a verbal one. Centrica, who own British Gas, collected a revenue of £30 billion in 2018 so they should pay us what we are owed.

“We have not even been issued an apology from anyone. There’s about 18 of us who have been affected and many have families, including a single dad.”

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Another employee, who says he is £3,700 out of pocket, said: “I haven’t been able to make my mortgage payment so I have had to borrow money from family and friends. The new company have given us a pay cut and we are now being paid weekly.

“I feel absolutely devastated to be honest. I worked over 200 hours in March to make my life financially better but I’ve seen nothing for it. My stress levels have been so high. I am now working full days for Dyno and elsewhere at night to try and get some money back.

“I feel like I’ve been robbed as we have been told we won’t get our overtime money.”

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A spokesperson for Centrica said: "I’m afraid that as the plumbing engineers are not our employees this is not something that we would be able to comment on – it would be a matter for the employers."

The liquidation is being dealt with HJS Solutions.

Shane Biddlecombe, HJS Recovery insolvency practitioner said: "I am unable to comment on matters at present, but I would request that anyone effected by the cessation of trade contact my office for further guidance."